By Genalyn Kabiling
The government is aiming for a "drastic improvement" in road traffic conditions amid plans to complete many infrastructure projects by 2020.
As the “Build, Build, Build” program shifts in full gear, Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar said the public could expect traffic congestion to further ease in the coming years.
DPWH Sec. Mark Villar (JAY GANZON / MANILA BULLETIN)
"Every year magkakaroon po ng improvement and especially in 2020 there would be a lot of projects that would be online and we’ll see even more drastic improvement,” Villar said during a Palace press briefing.
“Definitely by the end of the term of our President napakalaki po ang naitulong sa traffic, hindi lang po sa Metro Manila, doon sa lahat po ng urban centers ,” he added.
Under the "Build, Build, Build" program, Villar said the government seeks to build new roads and bridges in Metro Manila and other places to reduce travel time.
He said the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 and the NLEX (North Luzon Expressway)-SLEX (South Luzon Expresway) connector road are expected to be completed by 2020.
Other projects to be finished on the same year are the Southeast Metro Manila Expressway C-6 Phase 1; Cavite-Laguna Expresway, and the Tarlac-Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija expressway.
At least 12 new bridges crossing Pasig River will be built to provide alternative roads, he said.
"Every year magkakaroon ng improvement, that we can guarantee and it’s really our goal by the end of the term of our President na ma-decongest iyang Metro Manila," Villar said.
The DPWH has so far generated 100,000 jobs in the implementation of the infrastructure program, he added.
To ensure transparency and combat corruption, he said they also would use drones to monitor the infrastructure projects across the country.
"We are in favor of any transparency. In fact this year we’ll implement—for the first time mag-i-implement po kami ng software monitoring system for all DPWH projects," he said.
"We call it the PCMA (Project and Contract Management Application) system, whereby we’ll be utilizing drone technology and geotagging for project monitoring," he added.
DPWH Sec. Mark Villar (JAY GANZON / MANILA BULLETIN)
"Every year magkakaroon po ng improvement and especially in 2020 there would be a lot of projects that would be online and we’ll see even more drastic improvement,” Villar said during a Palace press briefing.
“Definitely by the end of the term of our President napakalaki po ang naitulong sa traffic, hindi lang po sa Metro Manila, doon sa lahat po ng urban centers ,” he added.
Under the "Build, Build, Build" program, Villar said the government seeks to build new roads and bridges in Metro Manila and other places to reduce travel time.
He said the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 and the NLEX (North Luzon Expressway)-SLEX (South Luzon Expresway) connector road are expected to be completed by 2020.
Other projects to be finished on the same year are the Southeast Metro Manila Expressway C-6 Phase 1; Cavite-Laguna Expresway, and the Tarlac-Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija expressway.
At least 12 new bridges crossing Pasig River will be built to provide alternative roads, he said.
"Every year magkakaroon ng improvement, that we can guarantee and it’s really our goal by the end of the term of our President na ma-decongest iyang Metro Manila," Villar said.
The DPWH has so far generated 100,000 jobs in the implementation of the infrastructure program, he added.
To ensure transparency and combat corruption, he said they also would use drones to monitor the infrastructure projects across the country.
"We are in favor of any transparency. In fact this year we’ll implement—for the first time mag-i-implement po kami ng software monitoring system for all DPWH projects," he said.
"We call it the PCMA (Project and Contract Management Application) system, whereby we’ll be utilizing drone technology and geotagging for project monitoring," he added.